[Senate Report 117-83]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
Calendar No. 284
117th Congress } { Report
SENATE
2d Session } { 117-83
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MODERNIZING ACCESS TO OUR PUBLIC LAND ACT
_______
February 28, 2022.--Ordered to be printed
_______
Mr. Manchin, from the Committee on Energy and Natural
Resources, submitted the following
R E P O R T
[To accompany S. 904]
The Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, to which was
referred the bill (S. 904), to require the Secretary of the
Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Assistant
Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to digitize and make
publicly available geographic information system mapping data
relating to public access to Federal land and waters for
outdoor recreation, and for other purposes, having considered
the same, reports favorably thereon with an amendment in the
nature of a substitute and recommends that the bill, as
amended, do pass.
AMENDMENT
The amendment is as follows:
Strike all after the enacting clause and insert the
following:
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Modernizing Access to Our Public
Land Act''.
SEC. 2. DEFINITIONS.
In this Act:
(1) Federal land.--The term ``Federal land'' means any land
managed by a Federal land management agency.
(2) Federal land management agency.--The term ``Federal land
management agency'' means--
(A) the Bureau of Reclamation;
(B) the National Park Service;
(C) the Bureau of Land Management;
(D) the United States Fish and Wildlife Service;
(E) the Forest Service; and
(F) the Corps of Engineers.
(3) Road or trail.--The term ``road or trail'' means a road
or trail designated by 1 or more of the Secretaries for public
use.
(4) Secretaries.--The term ``Secretaries'' means--
(A) the Secretary of Agriculture, acting through the
Chief of the Forest Service;
(B) the Secretary of the Interior; and
(C) the Secretary of the Army, acting through the
Assistant Secretary of the Army for Civil Works.
SEC. 3. INTERAGENCY DATA STANDARDIZATION.
Not later than 30 months after the date of enactment of this Act,
the Secretaries shall jointly develop and adopt interagency standards
to ensure compatibility and interoperability among applicable Federal
databases with respect to the collection and dissemination of data--
(1) relating to outdoor recreation sites on Federal land; and
(2) used to depict locations at which recreation uses are
available to the public.
SEC. 4. DIGITIZATION AND PUBLICATION OF EASEMENTS.
(a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations, not
later than 4 years after the date of enactment of this Act, each of the
Secretaries, to the maximum extent practicable, shall digitize and make
publicly available on the website of the Department of the Interior,
the Forest Service, and the Corps of Engineers, as applicable,
geographic information system mapping data that specifies, with respect
to the relevant Secretary, all Federal interests in private land,
including easements, reservations, and rights-of-way--
(1) to which the Federal Government does not have a fee title
interest; and
(2) that may be used to provide recreational access to the
Federal land.
(b) Public Evaluation of Accuracy.--The Secretaries shall include
on each website referred to in subsection (a), as applicable, a point
of contact to allow members of the public to ask questions or provide
feedback regarding the information described in that subsection.
SEC. 5. DATA CONSOLIDATION AND PUBLICATION OF ROUTE AND AREA DATA FOR
RECREATION USERS.
(a) In General.--Subject to the availability of appropriations,
beginning not later than 5 years after the date of enactment of this
Act, each of the Secretaries, to the maximum extent practicable, shall
make publicly available on the website of the Department of the
Interior, the Forest Service, and the Corps of Engineers, as
applicable, geographic information system data with respect to the
following:
(1) Status information with respect to whether roads and
trails on the Federal land are open or closed.
(2) The dates on which roads and trails on the Federal land
are seasonally closed.
(3) The classes of vehicles and types of recreational uses
that are allowed on each segment of roads and trails on the
Federal land, including the permissibility of--
(A) off-highway vehicles;
(B) motorcycles;
(C) nonmotorized bicycles;
(D) electric bicycles;
(E) passenger vehicles;
(F) nonmechanized transportation; and
(G) over-snow vehicles.
(4) The boundaries of areas where hunting or recreational
shooting (including archery, firearm discharge, and target
shooting) is regulated or closed on the Federal land.
(b) Updates.--
(1) In general.--The Secretaries shall update the data
described in subsection (a) not less frequently than 2 times
per year.
(2) Public evaluation of accuracy.--The Secretaries shall
include on each website referred to in subsection (a), as
applicable, a point of contact to allow members of the public
to ask questions or provide feedback regarding the information
described in that subsection.
(c) Effect.--Geographic information system data made publicly
available under subsection (a) shall not disclose information regarding
the nature, location, character, or ownership of historic,
paleontological, or archaeological resources, consistent with
applicable law.
SEC. 6. COOPERATION AND COORDINATION.
(a) Third-Party Providers.--The Secretaries may enter into an
agreement with a third party to carry out any provision of this Act.
(b) US Geological Survey.--The Director of the United States
Geological Survey may collect, aggregate, digitize, standardize, or
publish data on behalf of the Secretary of the Interior to meet the
requirements of this Act.
SEC. 7. REPORTS.
Not later than 1 year after the date of enactment of this Act and
annually thereafter through September 30, 2031, the Secretaries shall
submit a report on the progress made by the Secretaries with respect to
meeting the requirements of this Act to--
(1) the Committee on Energy and Natural Resources of the
Senate;
(2) the Committee on Environment and Public Works of the
Senate;
(3) the Committee on Natural Resources of the House of
Representatives; and
(4) the Committee on Transportation and Infrastructure of the
House of Representatives.
SEC. 8. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.
There are authorized to be appropriated--
(1) to the Secretary of the Interior to carry out this Act--
(A) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
(B) $5,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through
2025;
(2) to the Secretary of Agriculture to carry out this Act--
(A) $2,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
(B) $5,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through
2025; and
(3) to the Secretary of the Army to carry out this Act--
(A) $1,500,000 for fiscal year 2022; and
(B) $2,500,000 for each of fiscal years 2023 through
2025.
PURPOSE
The purpose of S. 904 is to require the Secretary of the
Interior, the Secretary of Agriculture, and the Assistant
Secretary of the Army for Civil Works to digitize and make
publicly available geographic information system mapping data
relating to public access to Federal land and waters for
outdoor recreation.
BACKGROUND AND NEED
The public demand to access and enjoy Federal lands for
recreational fishing, hunting, and other forms of outdoor
recreation continues to increase. However, there is currently
incomplete and inconsistent mapping data available to outdoor
recreationists as well as land management agencies such as the
Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the National
Park Service, and the Army Corps of Engineers. The current
situation prevents the full benefits of digital mapping and
global positioning system (``GPS'') technologies from being
used to navigate public lands. For example, a hunter, angler,
or other outdoor recreationist's real-time location on the
landscape can be pinpointed with a GPS unit, allowing the user
to know exactly where he or she is relative to property
boundaries, roads or trails, easements, and other key
landmarks.
The Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management own many
easements on adjacent private land that provide legal means of
access into lands managed by these agencies. However, records
of many of these easements are not digitized or stored in
public records, such as at a courthouse or county office, but
rather are stored only in paper files in various local or
regional offices. This makes it difficult or impossible for
outdoor recreationists to know the various locations available
to them that can be used for accessing public land. Also,
having accessible information available online and in one place
will help the Federal land management agencies identify the
biannual prioritized list of parcels that have significantly
restricted public access, as required by section 4105 of the
John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management, and Recreation
Act (Public Law 116-9).
In 2019, the Montana/Dakotas District of the BLM completed
a pilot project, digitizing their road and trail access
easements, and now other districts are also planning to begin
digitizing their access easements. In 2020, the Forest Service
estimated that, of the 37,000 existing easements held by the
agency, only 5,000 had been converted into digital files. S.
904 would provide direction and authorize additional resources
to help land management agencies digitize Federal easements and
to ensure that geospatial data is consistent across agencies
and easily accessible to the public, in order to facilitate its
use.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
S. 904 was introduced in the 117th Congress by Senator
Risch on March 23, 2021. The bill currently has 16 co-sponsors.
The Subcommittee on Public Lands, Forests, and Mining held a
hearing on this bill on June 16, 2021. Representative Blake
Moore introduced a House companion bill, H.R. 3113, on May 11,
2021. An amended version of H.R. 3113 was ordered to be
reported by unanimous consent by the Committee on Natural
Resources in the House of Representatives on July 14, 2021. In
the 116th Congress, similar bills were introduced by Senator
McSally, S. 3427, and Representative Fulcher, H.R. 6169, on
March 10, 2020. Neither bill received any further action.
COMMITTEE AMENDMENT
During its consideration of S. 904, the Committee adopted
an amendment in the nature of a substitute to the bill which
makes several substantive changes. The amendment limits the
requirement for standardizing and disseminating recreation data
to information related to the location and operating status of
Federal recreation sites. It also lengthens the time for the
Secretaries to create a website depicting all roads on Federal
land, whether they are closed to public travel, and the types
of vehicles that are allowed. The amendment eliminates the
bill's requirement to provide information regarding watercraft
use on bodies of water on Federal land. Also, the amendment
adds two new provisions that require the Secretaries to update
this information twice per year and permit the Secretaries to
work with a third party to gather and publish this data.
Finally, the amendment limits the reporting requirement to the
first 10 years after enactment. The amendment is described in
detail in the section-by-section analysis, below.
COMMITTEE RECOMMENDATION
The Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, in an
open business session on November 18, 2021, by a majority voice
vote of a quorum present, recommends that the Senate pass S.
904, if amended as described herein.
SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS
Section 1. Short title
This section provides the short title of the Act as
``Modernizing Access to our Public Land Act''.
Sec. 2. Definitions
Section 2 provides key definitions for the bill, including
the applicable Federal land management agencies.
Sec. 3. Interagency data standardization
Section 3 directs the listed land management agencies to
jointly develop interagency standards for data relating to
their outdoor recreation sites and data used to depict open
locations to the public. This section directs the Secretaries
to adopt these standards within 30 months after the date of
enactment and to ensure consistency among the various agencies'
databases to ensure interoperability.
Sec. 4. Digitization and publication of easements
Subsection (a) directs each of the Secretaries to digitize
and make available to the public geographic information system
mapping data of Federally-owned easements and rights-of-way on
adjacent private land that may be used to provide recreational
access to Federal land. The information is to be made available
on the websites of the listed land management agencies within 4
years of the date of enactment of this Act.
Subsection (b) requires the Secretaries to include on each
website a point of contact to allow members of the public to
provide feedback to ensure the information is accurate.
Sec. 5. Data consolidation and publication of route and area data for
recreation users
Subsection (a) requires the Secretaries to publish
electronic mapping data regarding the following: status
information as to when roads and trails are open or closed and
the dates of which roads and trails are seasonally opened and
closed, types of vehicles that are allowed on each segment of
roads and trails, and boundaries of areas where hunting or
recreational shooting is regulated or closed. Section 5
requires the Secretaries to publish this information within 5
years after the date of enactment of this Act.
Subsection (b) requires the Secretaries to update the
information described in subsection (a) twice per year and
requires a point of contact on each website for members of the
public to confirm or dispute the accuracy of the published
information.
Subsection (c) prohibits the data being made available
online under this Act from disclosing sensitive information,
including the presence of historic, paleontological, or
archaeological resources.
Sec. 6. Cooperation and coordination
Subsection (a) permits the Secretaries to enter into
agreements with a third party to carry out the provisions in
this Act.
Subsection (b) permits the Director of the U.S. Geological
Survey to collect, digitize, standardize, or publish data on
behalf of the Secretary of the Interior to meet the
requirements of this Act.
Sec. 7. Reports
Section 7 requires the Secretaries to submit a report to
Congress on the progress made within one year of the date of
enactment of this Act, and annually each year thereafter
through September 30, 2031.
Sec. 8. Authorization of appropriations
Section 8 authorizes a total of $47 million to be
appropriated to the Department of the Interior, the Forest
Service, and the Army Corps of Engineers through fiscal year
2025.
COST AND BUDGETARY CONSIDERATIONS
The Congressional Budget Office has not estimated the costs
of S. 904 as passed by the Senate. The Committee has requested,
but has not yet received, the Congressional Budget Office's
estimate of the cost of S. 904 as ordered reported. When the
Congressional Budget Office completes its cost estimate, it
will be posted on the Internet at www.cbo.gov.
REGULATORY IMPACT EVALUATION
In compliance with paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee makes the following
evaluation of the regulatory impact which would be incurred in
carrying out S. 904. The bill is not a regulatory measure in
the sense of imposing Government-established standards or
significant economic responsibilities on private individuals
and businesses. No personal information would be collected in
administering the program. Therefore, there would be no impact
on personal privacy. Little, if any, additional paperwork would
result from the enactment of S. 904, as ordered reported.
CONGRESSIONALLY DIRECTED SPENDING
S. 904, as ordered reported, does not contain any
congressionally directed spending items, limited tax benefits,
or limited tariff benefits as defined in rule XLIV of the
Standing Rules of the Senate.
EXECUTIVE COMMUNICATIONS
The testimonies provided by the Department of the Interior
and the Department of Agriculture at the June 16, 2021, hearing
on S. 904 follow:
Statement of Nada Wolff Culver, Deputy Director, Policy & Programs,
Bureau of Land Management, U.S. Department of the Interior
Thank you for the opportunity to testify on S. 904, the
Modernizing Access to Our Public Land Act. The bill directs the
Department of the Interior (Department), the U.S. Forest
Service (USFS), and the Army Corps of Engineers to jointly
develop and adopt interagency compatibility standards for
Federal databases for the collection and dissemination of
public lands recreation data. S. 904 also requires Federal
agencies to digitize geographic information system (GIS)
mapping data related to recreational access and travel
management and make it available to the public.
The Department supports the goals of the bill, which align
with our vision to increase access to outdoor recreation
opportunities for all Americans. Improving equitable access to
the outdoors for all people and offering opportunities to fully
enjoy our nation's public lands, including to communities that
have disproportionately less access to nature, is an important
priority for Secretary Haaland, and consistent with President
Biden's call to action in Executive Order 14008, Tackling the
Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad, to conserve, connect, and
restore 30 percent of our lands and waters by 2030 for the sake
of our economy, our health, and our well-being. Achieving these
goals will involve working collaboratively to pursue
conservation approaches that benefit local communities, improve
access to recreation, and expand economic growth.
Investing in technologies to help visitors locate and
safely access public lands is essential to supporting a variety
of recreational activities such as hunting, fishing, mountain
biking, climbing, kayaking, camping, and hiking. We believe
this bill has the potential to address some long-standing
challenges surrounding public access and data management and we
look forward to working with the sponsor and the Committee to
address a number of technical issues in the legislation.
background
Federal land management agencies oversee approximately 640
million surface acres. The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is
responsible for approximately 245 million of those acres while
the USFS manages another 193 million. Most other Federal land
is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (FWS), with
over 92 million acres, and the National Park Service (NPS),
with approximately 80 million acres. The Bureau of Reclamation
(Reclamation) and the Army Corps of Engineers also manage
Federal lands that are used for recreation.
Geospatial Data Management/Federal Geographic Data Committee
The Federal Geographic Data Committee (FGDC) is an
interagency committee established in 1990 that leads the
development, implementation, and review of Federal policies,
practices, and standards related to geospatial data. The U.S.
Geological Survey serves as its Executive Secretariat. Under
the Geospatial Data Act (GDA; P.L. 115-254), the FGDC
undertakes its mission with the understanding that jointly
developing standards across agencies promotes the
interoperability of Federal data and makes it more useful to
more citizens.
For example, as part of the Federal Data Strategy FY 2020
Action Plan, the FGDC and the Chief Data Officers Council will
develop machine interpretable processes to better relate data
kept in different databases. The Department also has agreements
with the USFS to improve interagency data management. Lastly,
Geoplatform, the Federal government's geospatial shared
service, provides one place for national-level data to be
registered and accessed by users. These ongoing efforts are
improving the accessibility and usefulness of existing data
assets.
Under the FGDC organizational structure, the BLM leads the
FGDC Cadastral Subcommittee, which develops and implements
plans to coordinate cadastral data-related activities among
Federal, state, tribal, and local governments, and the private
sector. The BLM publishes two key datasets through the FGDC:
the Public Land Survey System (PLSS), which is a coordinate
dataset based on cadastral survey information used for parcel
level mapping, and the Surface Management Agency (SMA) dataset,
which captures the best available Federal ownership
information. Both datasets support large scale depiction of
Federal ownership information and enhance our ability to depict
parcel level data for many purposes, including public access.
s. 904
S. 904 directs Federal land management agencies to develop
interagency standards to ensure compatibility among Federal
databases related to outdoor recreation. The bill requires
Federal agencies to digitize geographic information system
(GIS) mapping data related to recreational access and travel
management and make it available to the public.
Data Consolidation, Digitization, and Publication
Most of the data attributes identified in the bill will
require agencies to coordinate across many locations and
levels, and some attributes are likely to change regularly or
may not currently exist in a digital format. The capacities of
the FGDC will help agencies meet such challenges. The BLM notes
several provisions within Section 5(a) appear to overlap with
the requirements of the Dingell Act, which requires the BLM to
solicit input from the public and other stakeholders every two
years to identify and publish a priority list of BLM parcels
with high recreational values that are either inaccessible or
have significantly restricted public access.
The BLM is currently reviewing more than 2,000 public
priority access nominations for potential inclusion on the list
to be published later this year. The BLM Public Lands Access
Project has already begun an internal initiative to digitize
recreational access information into geospatial files and make
that information available to the public by the end of FY 2022.
In 2019, the BLM also initiated an effort to consolidate
and modernize the BLM land status records systems, through the
development of the Mineral and Land Records System (MLRS).
Statement of Chris French, Deputy Chief, National Forest System, U.S.
Forest Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture
Chairman Cortez Masto, Ranking Member Lee and members of
the subcommittee, thank you for the opportunity to appear
before you today to present the views of the U.S. Department of
Agriculture (USDA) on several public land bills.
s 904: modernizing access to our public land (mapland) act
The Modernizing Access to Our Public Lands Act would direct
DOI, the USDA Forest Service, and the U.S. Army Corps of
Engineers to jointly develop and adopt interagency standards to
ensure compatibility and interoperability among federal
databases for the collection and dissemination of outdoor
recreation data related to federal lands. Specifically, the
bill would require DOI, the USDA Forest Service, and the Army
Corps of Engineers to digitize and publish geographic
information system mapping data that includes:
federal interests in private land, including
easements and rights-of-way;
status information as to whether roads and
trails are open or closed;
the dates on which roads and trails are
seasonally opened and closed;
the types of vehicles that are allowed on
each segment of roads and trails;
the boundaries of areas where hunting or
recreational shooting is regulated or closed; and
the boundaries of any portion of a body of
water that is closed to entry, is closed to watercraft,
or has horsepower limitations for watercraft.
USDA supports the goal of enhancing access to National
Forest System lands by providing the specified data digitally
for online use by the public. The Department would like to work
with the bill sponsors and the Committee to address some
remaining issues posed by this bill.
Some of the information and classes of data are currently
available and accessible in Forest Service databases, including
easements and rights-of-ways, and whether and when roads and
trails are open or closed to various classes of motorized
vehicles. Additionally, the Sportsmen's Access to Federal Land
provisions in the John D. Dingell, Jr. Conservation, Management
and Recreation Act (Public Law 116-9) requires annual reporting
of National Forest System lands temporarily or permanently
closed to hunting, fishing or recreational shooting under the
Act but does not require the closures to be provided in digital
form for use in online mapping.
Currently, the Forest Service does not maintain information
on water bodies that are closed to watercraft or have
horsepower limitations. Additionally, on water bodies where
states, counties, or other governmental entities have
jurisdiction over watercraft use, it would be exceedingly
difficult for the Forest Service to build and keep current an
accurate database of those restrictions. We recommend the bill
language clarify that the Agency not be required to collect and
compile information on watercraft restrictions imposed by other
governmental entities.
We additionally recommend the date for reporting be changed
to allow upward reporting after the end of the fiscal year, so
units can prioritize keeping facilities open for public use and
maintaining preparedness for emergency response such as
wildfires during summer and early fall.
USDA appreciates the Committee's interest in these
important topics and strongly supports efforts to foster
recreational use of federal lands. We look forward to working
with the bill sponsors and the Committee to promote these
important goals.
CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW
In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that no
changes in existing law are made by the bill as ordered
reported.
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